Abstract

This study aimed to identify the prevalence of substance use before and during COVID-19; and examined its association with depression and social factors among 437 residents from the neighborhood of Harlem in Northern Manhattan, New York City. Over a third of respondents reported using any substance before COVID-19, and initiating/increasing substance use during COVID-19. The most common substances used before COVID-19 and initiated/increased during COVID-19 were smoking (20.8% vs. 18.3%), marijuana (18.8% vs. 15.3%), and vaping (14.2% and 11.4%). The percentages of any hard drug use were 7.3% and 3.4%, respectively. After adjustment, residents with mild (Prevalence Ratio [PR] = 2.86, 95% CI 1.65, 4.92) and moderate (PR = 3.21, 95% CI 1.86, 5.56) symptoms of depression, and housing insecurity (PR = 1.47, 95% CI 1.12, 1.91) had at least a 47% greater probability of initiating and/or increasing substance use. Conversely, respondents with employment insecurity (PR = 0.71, 95% CI 0.57, 0.88) were 29% less likely to report such patterns. No association was found between substance use initiation and/or increase and food insecurity. High prevalence of substance use during COVID-19 may lead residents to turn to substance use as a coping mechanism for psychosocial stressors. Thus, it is essential to provide accessible and culturally sensitive mental health and substance use services.

Details

Title
Substance Use Patterns and Their Association with Depression and Social Factors During COVID-19 Among Harlem Residents in New York City
Author
Vu, Thinh T. 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Dario, Joseph P. 2 ; Mateu-Gelabert, Pedro 3 ; Levine, Deborah 4 ; Punter, Malcolm A. 5 ; Borrell, Luisa N. 6 ; Ngo, Victoria K. 1 

1  The City University of New York, Center for Innovation in Mental Health, Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) (ISNI:0000 0001 2298 5718); The City University of New York, Department of Community Health and Social Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) (ISNI:0000 0001 2298 5718) 
2  Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital, Division of Pediatric Critical Care, New York, USA (GRID:grid.416167.3) (ISNI:0000 0004 0442 1996) 
3  The City University of New York, Department of Community Health and Social Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) (ISNI:0000 0001 2298 5718) 
4  Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, The City University of New York, Harlem Health Initiative, New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) (ISNI:0000 0001 2298 5718) 
5  Harlem Congregations for Community Improvement, Inc., New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) 
6  The City University of New York, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Graduate School of Public Health & Health Policy, New York, USA (GRID:grid.212340.6) (ISNI:0000 0001 2298 5718) 
Pages
937-944
Publication year
2023
Publication date
Dec 2023
Publisher
Springer Nature B.V.
ISSN
00945145
e-ISSN
1573-3610
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-023-01253-1
ProQuest document ID
2873639696
Copyright
© The Authors 2023 2023. corrected publication 2023. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.